Air Sealing and Insulation Inspections
CEUs: 0.8 ICC
This course provides the basics of building construction and includes an emphasis on air sealing and insulation as well as the inspection of these critical items. It concludes with a comprehensive video trip to the field to view these same areas and understand what happens over time if proper air sealing and insulation is not completed.
--- For those interested in becoming a Qualified Professional for LEED ---
The course is approved for eight hours of training for students who wish to become a Qualified Professional for LEED. You will receive the four hours of air sealing inspections and four hours of insulation inspections. It is designed to provide a portion of the training required by the USGBC for those wishing to become a Qualfied Professional for LEED projects located outside of the United States and Canada. A Qualified Professional can perform the HERS Rater or qualified energy rater tasks for these projects.
Once you have completed this on-line portion of the training, as well as its companion four hour course (Building Science Fundamentals), you will enter an apprenticeship where you will gain experience performing energy inspections and testing on at least two building projects with a similar scope of work as the LEED Projects you plan to undertake. If the projects will include blower door and duct testing, you must also gain hands-on experience with the tools and perform testing and verification under the guidance of a LEED for Homes Provider. Your experience will be documented and your certification completed by the Provider.
Course Outline
| Module 1 | Construction Basics |
|---|---|
This module will provide the basics of how a structure is built. You will learn about ceilings and attics, frame wall construction and alternative construction techniques, foundation wall types and construction, and even a bit about doors and windows. This will provide the basics of an understanding of how a building is put together, which helps you to understand where and how it would leak air and where the insulation is placed in each of these building components. | |
| Unit 1 | Construction Primer - Course Materials |
| Unit 2 | Ceilings and Attics |
| Unit 3 | Ceilings and Attics Quiz |
| Unit 4 | Anatomy of a Stud Frame Wall |
| Unit 5 | Walls and Floors |
| Unit 6 | Walls and Floors Quiz |
| Unit 7 | Windows and Doors |
| Unit 8 | Windows and Doors Quiz |
| Unit 9 | Foundations |
| Unit 10 | Slabs Slab Insulation and Capillary Action |
| Unit 11 | Foundations Quiz |
| Unit 12 | Reading Construction Plans |
| Unit 13 | Reading Construction Plans Quiz |
| Unit 14 | Construction Basics Final Quiz |
| Module 2 | Air Infiltration and Exfiltration |
| Measuring and diagnosing air leakage of the building shell is the focus of this module. Tools, methods, and calculations will be discussed as well as pressure influences and pressure diagnostics. | |
| Unit 1 | The Air Barrier |
| Unit 2 | Air Barrier Quiz |
| Unit 3 | Air Infiltration Testing and Diagnostics |
| Unit 4 | Air Infiltration Testing and Diagnostics Quiz |
| Unit 5 | Infiltration Calculations |
| Unit 6 | Infiltration Calculations Quiz |
| Unit 7 | Air Infiltration and Exfiltration Quiz |
| Module 3 | Air Distribution Systems and Duct Leakage |
| This module focuses on the air distribution system and how it impacts efficiency, safety and building durability. Tools and methods for measuring duct leakage and duct leakage calculations will be covered. | |
| Unit 1 | The Conditioned Air Distribution System |
| Unit 2 | The Conditioned Air Distribution System Quiz |
| Unit 3 | Duct Leakage Testing |
| Unit 4 | Duct Leakage Testing Quiz |
| Unit 5 | Duct Failures |
| Unit 6 | Duct Failures Quiz |
| Unit 7 | Duct Leakage Calculations |
| Unit 8 | Duct Leakage Calculations Quiz |
| Unit 9 | Conditioned Air Distribution Systems Quiz |
| Module 4 | Inspection Standards and Minimum Rated Features |
This module covers the minimum rated features of a home in detail and explains the steps involved in performing inspections in the field. | |
| Unit 1 | Performing Inspections: Study Materials |
| Unit 2 | Inspection Procedures for Minimum Rated Features |
| Module 5 | Insulation and Radiant Barrier Evaluation |
The amount of items and standards to be considered and evaluated when determining the quality of a residential insulation job or the installation of radiant barriers is surprising. The installation, the application, and the specific materials used all have their own set of requirements. After those have been met, the installation itself must be evaluated to determine the quality of that installation. Insulation and Radiant Barrier Evaluation walks you through all these considerations and prepares you to grade insulation and radiant barrier installations according to the ANSI/RESNET/ICC 301 Standard. | |
| Unit 1 | General Installation Requirements |
| Unit 2 | Insulation Evaluation General Requirements Quiz |
| Unit 3 | Specific Application Requirements |
| Unit 4 | Minimum Specific Application Requirements Quiz |
| Unit 5 | Specific Material Requirements |
| Unit 6 | Minimum Specific Material Requirements Quiz |
| Unit 7 | Reflective Materials Installation |
| Unit 8 | Reflective and Radiant Installation Requirements Quiz |
| Unit 9 | Insulation and Radiant Barrier Grading |
| Unit 10 | Insulation and Radiant Barrier Grading Quiz |
| Unit 11 | Insulation and Radiant Barrier Evaluation Quiz |
| Unit 12 | Insulation Evaluation Field Trip |
| Module 6 | Floor and Foundation Assembly Inspection Protocols |
Every building sits on a foundation of some type. Learn the minimum rated features and data you need to gather that relate specifically to each type of floor or foundation. You will also understand the minimum rated features around area and volume calculations that create the basis of the rated unit calculations. | |
| Unit 1 | Volume and Area Calculations |
| Unit 2 | Volumes and Area Quiz |
| Unit 3 | Foundation Basement Walls |
| Unit 4 | Basement Walls Quiz |
| Unit 5 | Crawl Space Walls |
| Unit 6 | Crawl Space Walls Quiz |
| Unit 7 | Slab Floors |
| Unit 8 | Slab Floors Quiz |
| Unit 9 | Frame Floor |
| Unit 10 | Frame Floors Quiz |
| Module 7 | Above Grade Wall Assembly Inspection Protocols |
Envelope wall energy performance varies based on construction, materials, insulation, location, even exterior color. This module covers the minimum rated feature of Walls Assembly and the data that must be collected in the field about the structure's envelope walls. | |
| Unit 1 | Wall Assembly |
| Unit 2 | Wall Assembly Quiz |
| Module 8 | Roof and Ceiling Assembly Inspection Protocols |
There are several types of ceiling assemblies and the impact to energy usage varies with the specific construction details of each type. The ceiling's relationship to the roof is also important and there is quite a bit of information that must be gathered about both ceilings and roofs. This module explores those data points. | |
| Unit 1 | Roof and Ceiling Assembly |
| Unit 2 | Roof and Ceiling Assembly Quiz |
| Module 9 | Rim and Band Joist Assembly Inspection Protocols |
This module explores rim and band joist inspection protocols, including what to do when the rim or band area cannot be inspected. | |
| Unit 1 | Rim and Band Joist Assembly |
| Unit 2 | Rim and Band Joist Quiz |
| Module 10 | Fenestration Assembly Inspection Protocols |
Fenestrations are the holes we make in our walls and ceilings for windows, doors and skylights. This module covers the inspection and data collection protocols for each of these. | |
| Unit 1 | Door Inspection and Data Collection |
| Unit 2 | Door Inspection Quiz |
| Unit 3 | Window Inspection and Data Collection |
| Unit 4 | Window Inspection Quiz |
| Unit 5 | Skylight Inspection and Data Collection |
| Unit 6 | Skylight Inspection Quiz |
| Module 11 | Air Sealing and Insulation Inspections Summary |
We wrap up the course in this module and bring it all together. | |
| Unit 1 | Air Sealing and Insulation Inspection Summary |
